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Hodgkins (Pilsbury) Memoir.
C058022  
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Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Scope and Contents
  • Biography
  • Existence and Location of Originals
  • Donor
  • Preferred Citation
  • Related Materials
  • Conditions Governing Use
  • Conditions Governing Access

  • Language of Material: English
    Contributing Institution: Society of California Pioneers
    Title: Pilsbury Hodgkins Memoir
    creator: Hodgkins, Pilsbury, 1825-1892
    Identifier/Call Number: C058022
    Physical Description: 1 folder 1 Folder( 1 typescript of original diary, 71 pages)
    Date (inclusive): 1890-1900
    Abstract: The file contains the 58-page typewritten and signed autobiography of Pilsbury Hodgkins, with multiple transcribed obituaries added at the end, resulting in a total of 71 pages. It is typed on paper that is in good condition, detailing the life of Mr. Hodgkins, a.k.a. Chips. He was born in Maine on February 17, 1825, and he writes about his time on the family farm, his move to Boston, his eventual move to San Francisco in search of gold in 1849, and resulting career with Wells Fargo. His mining operation was in the town of Jamestown, Tuolumne County.

    Scope and Contents

    The file contains the 58-page typewritten and signed autobiography of Pilsbury Hodgkins, with multiple transcribed obituaries added at the end, resulting in a total of 71 pages. It is typed on paper that is in good condition, detailing the life of Mr. Hodgkins, a.k.a. Chips. He was born in Maine on February 17, 1825, and he writes about his time on the family farm, his move to Boston, and his eventual move to San Francisco in search of gold in 1849. His mining operation was in the town of Jamestown, Tuolumne County. After his attempt at mining for gold, he got a job as an expressman for Wells Fargo from 1857 to 1891. Also included in the file is a poem called "CHIPS", a manuscript of a song called "Chips, the Messenger", a typed manuscript from the San Francisco Chronicle entitled "Chips is Dead" dated September 6, 1892, an account of Hodgkins's death in The Daily Republican from September 7, 1892, an account of his funeral from The Stockton Independent on September 8, 1892, and a short obituary from The Seaport News on September 10, 1892.

    Biography

    Pilsbury Hodgkins was born on Februrary 17th, 1825 in Nobleboro, Maine. In 1848, he left for California, working his passage as a carpenter on the ship "York" of the Pacific Company. He arrived in California in 1849 and worked at a variety of sites, including Jamestown and Soldier's Gulch. In addition to mining for gold, he went to work as an expressman for Reynolds Express in 1851, turning tis into his full-time occupation by 1853. From 1857 to 1870, he worked for Wells Fargo on a steamer between Stockton and San Francisco. From 1870 to 1877, he worked between San Diego and San Francisco. He eventually settled in Stockton and was a lifetime member of the Society of California Pioneers.

    Existence and Location of Originals

    The Society of California Pioneers, 101 Monetgomery St., Suite 150, The Presdiio of San Francisco, San Francisco CA, 94129

    Donor

    Donor and Date of acquisition unknown

    Preferred Citation

    The Pillsbury Hodgkins Memoir. The Society of California Pioneers

    Related Materials

    SCP Institutional Records: Obituary, Vol. 2, pg. 131 (Vault); Autobiography Records, Vol. 7, pg. 63 (Digitized online at OAC); Archives Records, Vol. 2, pg. 201 (Vault). Mortuary Record 1892 - 1906, pg. 10 (Vault).

    Conditions Governing Use

    There are no restrictions on access

    Conditions Governing Access

    Collection Open for Research

    Subjects and Indexing Terms

    Gold mines and mining -- California -- History.
    Frontier and pioneer life – California
    Pioneers -- California -- History -- 19th century
    Gold Discovery - California
    Gold mines and mining -- California -- History.
    Voyages to the Pacific coast
    Wells, Fargo & Company.
    Hodgkins, Pilsbury, 1825-1892